death valley [ATTICUS] ●

[Atticus Lewis]

A soft sigh and a small shrug would be the answer to Bastion’s question. “The ones we know of are murder victims. The bodies just go missing,” he explained simply. “Dunno about those put in the ground from age- unless we’ve all stopped aging too.” Atticus paused as this thought hit him. Had he heard about anyone dying of disease or old age recently? Or …? He couldn’t remember now; his job didn’t normally entail such things. “Wouldn’t that suck,” he finally frowned thinking about that. If no one aged, advanced, or anything more, they would all be in limbo from there on out. Nah, that couldn’t be right. Maybe he’d look into it later.

Bastion’s choke at his words earned a snort from Atticus. The clear question thereafter earned a small smirk in response. Leaning back and pressing the rim of the cup to his lips again, Atticus finished off his drink. “Dark hair, tan skin, gold eyes a bit different than yours,” he summarized briefly with a small shrug. “I heard he’s rich as hell too.” Another smirk played across Atticus’s features seemingly at the thought of that. He couldn’t resist the last comment to play from his lips, however, as Atticus met Bast’s eyes. “Ya interested?” he asked snidely.

[Bastion Lewis]

Atticus’s answer basically just opened up several more intriguing questions. “Ah… hmmm…” His brows furrowed as he tried to think. He couldn’t think of any news of people dying of old age, but then again he didn’t read obituaries in the paper or anything. He was also never anywhere near a hospital, and he didn’t have any friends who worked in the medical field or anything. “Maybe we’re already dead, kind of like Lost or something.” He shrugged thereafter. If this was being dead it wasn’t all bad, but still. It was a slightly upsetting thought. “Doubt it, though.” He added thereafter, though his features were still slightly troubled.

His elder brother distracted him easily enough as he went on to describe the guy from work he had been talking about. Well, he didn’t sound bad looking at all. However, the final question had him blushing as he took a hasty sip of his coffee to sort of cover it up. “N-No!” He insisted stubbornly. Not interested at all, definitely not. Nope. “'Sides, you said you were.” He went on to say. He wouldn’t want to steal someone from his brother, not that he could, but yeah.

--

Atticus Lewis

[Atticus Lewis]

For a few seconds, there was a disturbed look that passed across Atticus’s features. He didn’t want to think that somehow they were already dead, as if perhaps the gods had come and killed them all rather than sealing off the area. If this was some sort of purgatory or supposed to be heaven, he was going to have to have a talk with one of these asshole gods. A snort finally rushed passed his nostrils as if in refusal to believe. “No way,” he smirked after a moment. “That’d suck too badly.” Thereafter, a snide sort of laugh escaped from him. Really, though, he didn’t want to think about being dead just yet. There was too much to live for, heh.

Like a certain CSI guy, yeah. Describing Chris on vague terms was pretty easy though Atticus found trying to zero in on what traits were the best was a bit more difficult. Maybe he’d just have to snatch up a picture of him sometime hah. The color on Bastion’s features wasn’t missed, and a dry smirk drew itself onto Atticus’s. The stubborn insistence that he wasn’t interested earned a small snort and a shoulder shrug. “True,” he replied with a grin. “Doesn’t mean ya can’t look sometime.” There was another tormenting laugh thereafter before Atticus settled again. “But yeah, he’s pretty interestin’, always wears sleeves for some reason,” Atticus paused there for a moment. “Bet he’s either got tat sleeves or a lower body temp.” he noted after a moment.

[Bastion Lewis]

He honestly hadn’t meant to upset his brother, or even himself, but his mind just seemed to naturally wander to dark places. He was more cynical than the world knew, mostly because Atticus was about the only person he was actually himself around. “It was just a thought, I’m sure I’m wrong.” He said, keeping his tone light. He wasn’t so sure, actually, but there wasn’t really any way to prove or disprove it. Or was there? He would have to look into it more. He had a morbid curiosity about it at this point.

He sipped at his coffee slowly, wishing the color would go away from his cheeks. It felt slightly odd to just casually discuss a hot guy with his brother, but at the same time it didn’t. Who else would he talk to about it to? “Yeah, I’ll just come to work with you someday and casually check him out.” He stuck his tongue out thereafter, though he was actually interested in going to work with his brother. He would like to see what went on, honestly. At the comment on the other man’s dressing habits, he pursed his lips. “Well, it is cold this time of year.” He stated. “Does he have any tattoos on his hands?” He questioned. Where there were hand tattoos there were usually sleeves.

--

Atticus Lewis

[Kimberly Ann Lewis]

The most unusual sight was noticed by those not otherwise engrossed in their food, drink, or conversation. Already a rarity, a hummingbird somehow found its way into the mall. It flew and glided in intervals as it weaved its way past pillars and holiday decorations, and even people. Children who noticed him pointed and brought attention to him. They laughed and made a big fuss, which was fine to the bird. He wasn't trying to be stealthy. Not yet anyway. He was bird only in appearance. In reality he was much much more. He pondered briefly if he should have taken the form of a homing pigeon upon creation instead of this form. But he knew his master liked hummingbirds best. The mental prying told him as much. Not that he could change that now or anything. The point was rather mute, really. Plus he was fond of this form. He was able to fly right, left, up, down, backwards, and even upside-down or hover in place like a helicopter. Not something other birds were capable of.

The familiar in hummingbird's clothing was an immortal being that transcended time and space. Its exact makeup unknown to humanity. He'd lived a long time. Thousands of years. His real name could never be spoken by a mortal. Only the Gods knew it and could control and summon him to do their bidding. He'd been instructed to serve a master on earth in a limited capacity. He knew many masters in his time and had taken on many forms. The name "Kip" given to him by his current master was short but functional, and his master even though young, was by far the most fun. It had been a long time since he'd had a form that could fly. And though forbidden to speak after the dream by the god that bound him to his young master, he was happy that she was intelligent enough to quickly learn how to interpret him. He was well fed and well cared for.

Kip pushed those thoughts out of his mind. He was running out of time. He had to be in place before his impatient master initiated the transport. She was a child after all. He could not let her appear up in the air and fall, but that was probably better than letting her linger even a second more than necessary in the void than she must. It was such a harsh and unforgiving place. No oxygen, turbulent, and freezing cold. A warm blooded, soft bodies creature such as a human would not survive more than a few minutes if caught there.

'There!' he thought as he visually located the two human relatives of his master he'd been tracking. He swooped down and through the open doorway into the place they were sitting. He wasted no time in surveying the surroundings. He stopped and hovered overhead, his eyes on the bird familiar of the younger of the two. It should know Kip was not a threat or food, but Kip kept his guard up anyway. Kip hovered, his hum oscilating in pitch as he set down on the hair of the older of the two while he sent his signal to his master.

However, hair was a strange substance. It looked rather solid, but was anything but. Kip's feet did not find a solid surface and he tumbled and fell, landing in the human's beverage.

There was a faint flash of golden light during the commotion and a wide-eyed young girl who was not there a second ago was suddenly occupying the space that held nothing but thin air prior. There were cries of surprise from a waitress and a few of the patrons who'd seen the girl simply appear. Honey brown eyes stared at nothing. Her long black hair looking wind swept and frosted for some reason. Little hands were balled into fists and shook with the strain of being clenched. The rest of her body clothed in a frost covered yellow hooded shirt and black jeans covered with a few random pink butterflies seemed to shiver before her eyes blinked a second later and a gasp of air was inhaled.

Kimberly was in a state of shock at the experience of long range teleportation. Something she was ill prepared for. Her familiar could not speak to warn her of what to expect. The explanation on that first night when Kip did speak to her in her dream was too vague and overwhelming to be comprehended by the 8yo girl.

Kimmie's eyes focused, her head turning left and right between the two men seated at the table before her. No words would leave her lips, even though they were open to take in several breaths of air. Relief flooded her. No words were needed to read the expression on her features. Her eyes welled with unshod tears.

Kip in the meantime shook the coffee out his feathers. He seemed unharmed by the hot liquid, yet pecked at Atticu's hand to show his displeasure.

[Atticus Lewis]

The thoughts on already being dead were put away for now in substitution for an easier subject. A small smirk grasped Atticus’s features as Bastion spoke though he gave a small shrug at the idea it could easily be the cold. He’d been about to try and remember if Chris had hand tattoos or not when the sound of vibrating wings zipped into his ears. A purple eye rose above dark sunglasses catching the rush of a strangely familiar bird coming at him, and he fidgeted briefly when for a second he thought it was about to dive bomb him. Instead, it tried to land on his head which was arguably worse. The strange pricking feeling his scalp experienced from even the smallest touch had Atty raising a hand to try and seize it. However, a shift in head meant to make it easier for him to grasp the bird caused it to tumble into his drink, and coffee splattered.

Atticus winced behind his shades though whether it was in empathy for the bird or the strange sting of coffee he’d gotten from the splash, he didn’t know. He’d been about to reach in the cup and pull it out when the flash of light caused his head to jut sideways, his attention taken by the form of Kimberly that would appear. Though she had been growing fast as children do, and though he’d been busy most of her life time, Atticus knew Kimmie instantly. She was his and Bast’s youngest sibling and only sister, and though the subject of her birth was still a family controversy, she was still theirs. Lips pressed together as purple eyes blinked slowly; getting his bearings was strangely difficult then and there.

She had to have teleported. He knew her power as he knew Bastion’s, yet how had she managed to get there. Rather than rise, he allowed his vision to briefly scan the area as though expecting their parents to come running around the corner or something similar. When they didn’t, he pushed back his chair and slowly stood as though to enhance his vison range. A sting in hand would cause Atticus to glance down again, purple eyes settling on Kip. Frowning, he reached into the coffee and plucked the bird out before setting it on the table. Glancing sideways, he focused on Kimberly again half expecting her to be gone again. When she wasn’t, he was glancing towards Bast. “What?” was the question addressed to no one in particular.

[Bastion Lewis]

He found himself rather distracted with thoughts of what this guy that Atticus worked with looked like. If Atticus thought he was hot then surely he was, but Bastion wanted to see for himself. He was sure he could probably tag along with his brother to work someday, though what he wasn’t sure about was why he cared so much. By all rights he really shouldn’t.

He barely noticed the bird when it first showed up. He was very used to birds entering and exiting the scene thanks to that stupid raven. Eventually, however, he noticed that Atticus’s gaze and attention was no longer on himself. His eyes flicked around, finally finding the bird right as it made the mistake of trying to perch on his elder brother’s head. His nose curled slightly. He hated birds. He hadn’t before, but the raven had more or less turned him against them. Even still, as the small creature tumbled into the coffee, his lips turned down. He didn’t want it to get hurt, he just wasn’t excited by its presence.

Something even more distracting than the bird would shortly appear though. He yelped slightly as that light shined, jerking backward and removing his hands from the table. He blinked several times when she manifested. The confusion on his face mirrored his brother’s nearly identically. Even if the girl wasn’t facing him, he knew immediately who she was. “K-Kimberly?” He stuttered out, his eyes searching for their parents even though he was aware of the fact that she had to have teleported. He reached out toward her, his fingers brushing her yellow hoodie lightly. “What is…?” His eyes moved over the girl to catch his brother’s gaze. He had no more answers than Atticus did, though.

--

Kimberly Ann Lewis

[Kimberly Ann Lewis]

The stunned girl could only watch her brothers as they reacted to her. The horror of the void still fresh in her mind had robbed her of her speech. It was like nothing she could have ever imagined. A gray world devoid of color. Bitter cold like she'd never felt before. It as if She'd landed naked on the south pole, yet there was no snow. No trees. No nothing. Just empty gray space. And she tried to call out to Kip, but there was no sound. Not from her mouth, not from anywhere. And something she could only describe as wind buffeted her entire body with intensity. Like a tornado was the only way she would be able to describe it though she'd never been in one. It felt solid somehow, she could not even begin to describe it. All that wind, yet she could not breath. No, that wasn't right. She was breathing. She remembered trying so hard to inhale and exhale. And she going trough the motions, but the air was empty. She could not feel its passage into and out of her lungs. Empty. It was air, but there was nothing breathable in it. Like not breathing at all. Just.... empty. Thats the only way she could describe the whole of the place. Complete and utter emptiness.

Atticus noticed her first, or so she thought. His eyes seemed to travel away to look through her, and then around into the distance. Her brown orbs darted to Bastion as he called her name. Yet his eyes too looked past her and into the distance. Fear gripped her. 'They can't see me....' She though. And she was horrified. Honey brown eyes widened at Atticus who glanced at her, but he looked confused. His eyes turned once more to Bastion. 'No. I'm here!!' she thought, but the words did not make it past her lips. Her body still not responding either. "What?" He asked of Bastion, and Kim's eyes turned to Bastion. His hand was outstretched and he brushed her hoodie lightly. He looked to not believe or not see and looked back at Atticus.

Kimberly's lips quivered as the words "what is..?" left his lips. She felt his touch, her eyes pleading for him to see her, yet they lifted away to look at Atticus. "I'm right here!" She shouted finally gaining control over herself. "Can't you see?" She choked out and rushed at Bastion and threw her arms around him. "I'm right here!" She cried.

She was shivering. Her skin and clothing cold and moist to the touch as she layer of frost melted.

[Atticus Lewis]

Atticus’s mind was processing slowly; he felt like an outdated computer for as he struggled to grasp what exactly had happened. Kim had teleported there; there was no doubt. He had only known her to teleport short distances, however. If their parents weren’t around, how had she managed it? Did she make multiple jumps? But how would she have known where they were if that were the case? The bird. Instinctively Atticus’s eyes flashed to the humming bird, dark purple spheres regarding it warily for a moment before Kim’s shout made them shoot away.

Atticus fidgeted uncomfortably from the girl’s exclamation and question, but as she clung to Bastion and cried more, the eldest of the three let out a slow even breath. “We can see ya, Kim,” he replied abet a tad late before his attention shifted around the room again. Quite a few people were perturbed by the sudden appearance of the child, yet quite a few had returned to their own business after the fact, as if with the surprise gone, there was nothing to worry about. Surprises had become a way of life for an area warped by gods and powers. Even Atty had to admit that probability of anything had been beaten and thrown out a window harshly by the appearance of such ethereal creatures.

He caught a few uncertain gazes that quickly looked away before Atticus finally returned his attention to the matter at hand. Closing the distance between himself and Bast and Kimberly by default, he bent down on one knee to the girl. “What happened, exactly?” was the question that fell from his lips.

[Bastion Lewis]

If Atticus’s mind was moving slowly, Bastion’s seemed to be even more so – which was disconcerting for someone who typically had a million thoughts running through his mind at a million miles an hour. It would take his sister’s exclamation and her arms around his neck before he would really react fully. His arms wrapped around her automatically, and he noted the fact that her body and clothing seemed to be cold and slightly damp. “Hey, it’s okay.” The words fell from his lips without any thought. Reassuring Kimberly was like second nature to him. “We can see you, you’re fine.” He went on to say, his voice much calmer and even than he felt. If he acted upset she would only get more upset. 

He watched over her shoulder as Atticus closed the distance between them. There were plenty of questions in his eyes and on his features that his elder brother had no way of answering. He supposed that Kimberly had to have teleported here, but he hadn’t been aware that she could do that. It was dangerous and it made him nervous. What if she teleported into traffic or something? He bit his lip, though his grip on her lessened as Atticus posed his question. “You need to take this off.” He told her, tugging on the yellow hoodie. She didn’t need to be in wet clothes. “And then tell us what happened.” He continued

--

Kimberly Ann Lewis

[Kimberly Ann Lewis]

Her brother Bastion's arms reacting to her and his words combined with Atticus's acknowledging her presence was a tremendous weight off the poor girl's shoulders. She never wanted to feel a pang of fear like that ever again. She sobbed, squeezing her hug as tight as she could.

The adrenaline rush from her ordeal in the void and the fear was almost spent, but Kimberly had no way of knowing what the strange feelings in her body meant. She only knew that she was cold, shivering, and feeling to be heavier every second that passed. Her brother's voice behind her took her attention from her herself and she turned and threw her arms around her oldest brother. "Addy" she squeaked.

He'd asked her a question about what happened, but Kimmie had no answer at the moment. She was so confused. That long range teleport was nothing like the quick short ones. It was horrifying. She felt so heavy. But she didn't know what was going on.
"You need to take this off and then tell us what happened" Bastion said as he tugged on her hoodie. She wanted to be a good girl and do what she was told, but it was just so much easier to do nothing. "In a minute. I just....." And her voice trailed off sounding sleepy.

Tapping sounds would be heard then. Something that had gone unnoticed and ignored was clamoring for their attention. Wings buzzed. A beak not intended for pecking desperately tapping on the mug of on the table. Bellow the bird were sugar packets scattered about. Kip dipped his beak into the beverage and then continued his frantic tapping.

[Atticus Lewis]

As those light eyes met his own, Atticus could only offer a brief smirk before Kimmie had turned and gripped around him this time. Unlike Bast, Atticus wasn’t as mechanical in returning hugs, but there was only a moment’s hesitate before he returned the gesture gently. Her word in his ears, the simple ‘Addy’ pulled at empathy Atticus otherwise suppressed, and he sighed softly in response. “It’s alright, Kim,” the eldest brother assured very briefly. Though he wasn’t sure it would be and though he was a realist before an optimist, Atticus could attempt to be soothing when necessary. This was one of those times.

She was cold, chilly to the touch, and even through his clothes, Atticus was aware of it. His first assumption was she had been outside in the cold air, but if she had managed to teleport all the way there, what need was there for her to go out? Atticus bit his lip waiting for Kimmie to speak though Bast would cut into these thoughts. Kimmie’s exhausted reply drew a simple sigh from Atticus as he shifted, scooping up under her and lifting up the little girl as he stood. His strength made her light to hold. “Bast I …” Atticus stopped upon hearing the tapping seemingly for the first time. Frowning, he looked back to Bast. With a simple head gesture, he motioned for Bastion to sit down, and if complied with, he’d set the girl in Bast’s lap and proceed to the front of the café.

[Bastion Lewis]

The middle child was rather at a loss for what to do. It wasn’t every day that your younger sister literally appeared out of nowhere cold and possibly sick. How was anyone supposed to know what to do? Even Atticus didn’t seem to know, and that bothered him more than anything. Either way, when Kimmie pulled away and threw her arms around his brother instead, Bastion breathed out a bit and tried to force himself to relax. He was even more concerned by the fact that Kimmie seemed too tired to listen to him. Most of the time the girl was good about following instructions. He bit his lip as he watched Atticus scoop her up and he was about to ask what to do when that bird started making a ruckus. He turned toward it sharply, though he picked up on the meaning easily enough.

As the head gesture was given by his elder brother he sat down immediately and took their sister into his arms. He could only assume, given that reaction, that Atticus had picked up on the bird’s meaning as well. As their brother disappeared to get something sweet for Kimmie he turned his attention back to her. “Atty is gonna go get you something to make you feel better.” He told her gently. He adjusted her in his lap slightly, brushing some of her hair from her face. “If you’ll take this off, you’ll feel better, too.” He told her once again. Getting her out of that damp, cold hoodie would do a lot for warming her up, after all. If the girl chose to comply this time around, he would set the hoodie off to the side and wrap her in his own jacket instead – forget the fact that he was going to freeze without it.

--
Kimberly Ann Lewis

[Kimberly Ann Lewis]

The youngest of the Lewis siblings was so confused. Everything felt wrong to her. She wanted to ask her brothers for help, but she couldn't even begin to understand what she was feeling, let alone try to explain it. Her mind was awake and alert, yet her body was something else entirely. 'Heavy. Cold. Sore.' Were the words that she wanted to say. But what sense did that make. Let alone the fact that she was shaking and didn't quite understand why. It was different than when she'd been cold before. And she'd been tired before millions of times. This did not feel like that either. The fact of the mater was that her body chemistry was going haywire.

She'd never experienced physical exhaustion before and would never know how to explain it. The aching was akin to bodyaches one would experience with a fever, but it was more than that also. How was an 8yo girl supposed to understand any of that. And even then she would be wrong to describe what she was feeling as such. The truth of the matter was that she was experiencing something not so unlike what a diabetic would feel when his blood sugar levels dropped dangerously low. Only Kimberly was not diabetic. Her energy stores were burned away in those short seconds that it took to teleport such a distance for the first time. With nothing consumed for breakfast beforehand, there was nothing left to turn into energy but the fat stores in her own body, which were few. And ketones were such a horribly inferior energy source to carbs and protein. That and converting fat to ketones to something usable as energy was a grossly inefficient process. Especially for a child who was otherwise healthy. Hypoglycemia. Ketoacidosis. Those would be her diagnosis if she were to have been rushed to a hospital in those moments. Her symptoms were similar. However, those would be wrong in the long run. Sleep would help her chemistry return to normal slowly. Ingestion of sugar would be the quickest way to even things out. Other food would be slower due to the time it takes to convert those carbs and proteins to sugar.

Kimberly felt herself being lifted and carried and even smiled at this through everything else. She was placed in Bastion's lap where she sat looking dazed. She slowly put her arms around Bastion's neck and rested her head on his shoulder. Her skin was flushed slightly as her brother adjusted her on his lap while telling her that Addy was getting her something to make her feel better. She nodded at this and replied with a simple "Kay". Her attention seemed to be focused on her familiar who was perched on the lip of the coffee cup starting back at her, until he brushed some of her hair from her face.

Her brown orbs turned to Bastion as he asked that she take her hoodie off again, and at first she looked to ignore him once more by replying "My tummy feels funny" almost on queue with a rumble sound coming from within, but she leaned away from him shortly after and put her arms up to let the hoodie be taken. Underneath was a pink shirt that was somewhat drier than the hoodie.

[Atticus Lewis]

Atticus’s mind ticked as he stood in line waiting to order. With a spare moment, he had fished out his phone and begun to compose what he knew of the situation into a text to their parents, but as he read over it once, the eldest Lewis noted how disjointed and uninformative it sounded. He deleted it and rewrote it twice before getting to the front of the line and deciding to send the third draft. Setting the phone in his pocket again, Atticus finally glanced over the menu. Despite not being in Kimberly’s life near as much as Bastion, Atticus knew the girl’s likes and dislikes at least. Ordering the largest hot chocolate with marshmallows, three chocolate cookies, a hefty blueberry muffin, and an enormous cinnamon roll, Atticus paid and took a step to the side as all of it was prepared.

Turning and folding his arms in front of himself, Atticus stared back into the café. From where he was standing, he could still see Bast and Kimmie, and as he laid eyes on them, those thoughts came back readily. If she could teleport long distances, and if the bird has something to do with it, why was she so cold? The question spun in Atticus’s head kicking up the dust of imagination with it. With their little world turned on its head by the toybox event, the rational code was superfluous if not nonexistent, and Atticus knew it. There was too much possibility, and not enough information to bring forth any grounded facts. His phone vibrated cutting any further thoughts thereafter. Fishing it from his pocket, Atticus frowned upon reading the return text. Their mother hadn’t even noticed Kim had been gone but was now asking the same questions Atticus was. Atticus sighed and was about to return the text when the subtle click of things being set on the counter caused him to turn again.

The food was plated, and the drink was steaming in a tall mug. Clasping both, Atticus brought them back to the table setting one down after the other. “Here,” he spoke simply. “Be careful, the chocolate’s steaming.” Sitting down again, Atticus let off a sigh. Maybe with some of her favorites, Kimmie would brighten again— no, he was sure of it. This was exhaustion from exertion from a power, wasn’t it? It was similar to what he felt when he overexerted his power— Power. Deep purple eyes darted to the hoddie that had been shed, and Atticus stared for a moment. He could technically use his power on it, couldn’t he? All intimate objects he had tried had been capable of being viewed. This should be no different.

No, he didn’t need to deal with a headache right now. As eldest it fell on him to be in control of the situation. He didn’t need to be overloaded and leave Bast in an even worse predicament.